SHASHUSHO Hiragana Flashcards — Printable Front and Back Beginner Cards

Free Printable Hiragana Flashcards for Beginners

These SHASHUSHO hiragana flashcards drill the second set of yōon combined kana — し plus a small ゃ, ゅ, or ょ. Like all yōon, these form a single syllable (sha, shu, sho), not two (shi-ya, shi-yu, shi-yo). The base し already sounds like English "shi" (not "si"), so adding a small ゃ/ゅ/ょ slides cleanly into the equivalent of English sha/shu/sho.

You get double-sided flashcards printed on letter-size paper (8.5 × 11 inches). The front of each card shows the Japanese word in hiragana; the back shows the English meaning plus the romaji reading. The SH combined kana unlock essential vocabulary: 写真 (shashin, "photograph"), 社会 (shakai, "society"), 趣味 (shumi, "hobby"), 出張 (shucchou, "business trip"), 食堂 (shokudou, "cafeteria / dining hall").

What's on each card?

Front: the Japanese word written in large hiragana, with the romaji pronunciation below.
Back: the English meaning, mirrored so it lines up with the front when you print double-sided.
Subtle StudyHiragana.com watermark on each card so the deck stays branded after cutting.

How to print and assemble

Click the Print button above (or press Ctrl/Cmd + P).
Choose two-sided printing and flip on the long edge — this keeps front and back aligned.
Use standard 8.5" × 11" letter paper. Card stock works too if you want sturdier cards.
Cut along the dashed lines to separate the six cards on each sheet.
Optional: laminate the cards for longer life.

How to study with hiragana flashcards

The point of beginner hiragana flashcards isn't just memorising characters — it's connecting them to real vocabulary the moment you learn them. Use the deck this way:

Hold a card so only the front (hiragana) is visible. Read it aloud and try to recall the meaning.
Flip the card to check. If you got it right, set it in a "knew it" pile; if not, return it to the deck.
Shuffle and repeat until the "didn't know it" pile is empty.
Switch directions: look at the English meaning and try to recall the hiragana spelling. This is harder but builds active recall.

Why SH combined kana matter

The SH yōon group is one of the densest in everyday Japanese. しゃ appears in 写真 (shashin, "photograph"), 社会 (shakai, "society"), 会社 (kaisha, "company"), and the everyday-life verb 喋る (shaberu, "to chat"). しゅ shows up in 趣味 (shumi, "hobby"), 主人 (shujin, "husband / master"), 出張 (shucchou, "business trip"), 種類 (shurui, "kind / type"). しょ is everywhere: 食堂 (shokudou, "cafeteria"), 書道 (shodou, "calligraphy"), 紹介 (shoukai, "introduction"), 初めて (hajimete, "first time" — but mid-word in many compounds). Together with the J yōon (じゃ/じゅ/じょ) it covers a huge slice of Sino-Japanese vocabulary.

Are these flashcards really free? Yes — completely free. Print as many as you like, share with classmates, use them in your classroom. StudyHiragana.com is supported by interactive practice tools, not paywalls.

Do I need to know any kanji? No. Every card uses hiragana only — there are no kanji to memorise. The English meaning is on the back for reference.

Are these flashcards good for kids? Absolutely. The vocabulary is concrete and simple, and the kana are written in a clean serif font that's easy to recognise.

Can I print them on smaller paper? The layout is tuned for US letter-size paper. If you print on A4, set your printer to "fit to page" — the cards will scale down a bit but the front/back alignment still works.

Keep practising

After you've mastered these SHASHUSHO flashcards, deepen your hiragana skills with our other free tools:

Interactive しゃしゅしょ guide — pronunciation, stroke order, and a writing canvas to practice each character.
Printable hiragana flashcards by character — single-character flashcard sheets for each row of the chart.
Full hiragana chart — all 46 basic hiragana characters at a glance.
StudyHiragana.com home — interactive practice with stroke order, recall games, and spaced repetition.